Can't Open or Create New Files in Photoshop

Updated By - June 27, 2021

If you are suddenly unable to open or create new files in Photoshop, know that you are not alone. I have also personally encountered this issue after a recent PS update. Fortunately, fixing the problem is quite simple. In the following section, I show you how.

How to Fix Can't Open or Create New Files in Photoshop

To fix the issue and start opening or creating new files in Photoshop; assuming you're using Windows:

  1. Launch Photoshop from your Computer.
  2. Once PS is up and running, press Ctrl+K to open Preferences.
  3. Tick the box to Use Legacy "New Document" Interface, and then click OK
    Create Files in Photoshop - Using Legacy Interface
  4. Now, press Ctrl+N to Create a New File or Ctrl+O to open an existing file.
    If all went well, you should once again be able to open existing files or create new files in Photoshop.
    Create a New File Photoshop

Note: I have encountered cases where the above fix did not work for opening files. In which case uninstalling and reinstalling Photoshop did fix the problem. I've noticed that Photoshop can be very unstable and often tends to crash on Windows 11. So if you are planning to upgrade to Windows 11, be aware that you might be in for a bumpy ride until things get sorted out upstream from Adobe.